“Visualize this thing that you want. See it, feel it, believe in it. Make your mental blueprint and begin to build.” — Robert Collier in How Successful People Think

Last week, I shared with you some Aloha Lessons I got from Rick’s and my 10th anniversary celebration trip to Hawaii. Now, I want to share one other lesson I got from the trip – a real mind-bender.

It wasn’t what I had thought would happen. It was something I had known could happen, but like so many of the delightful surprises God/the Universe sends us in answer to our desires, it arrived in a far different “package” than I had imagined. It caught me totally off guard. And it delighted me nonetheless.

First, a little background: One of the most effective tools for manifesting your desires into the material world is visualization. You simply close your eyes and make a “movie” in your head, with you as the writer, director and actor — acting out you enjoying something you strongly desire to have — a new car, a new house, a new love, a growing business team, a large amount of cash – anything your heart desires.

If you will spend just 3-5 minutes each morning and each night before you go to sleep doing this, it will show God/the Universe exactly what you want AND program your subconscious mind to figure out a way to get it for you. The process for this is sort of an assembly line for manifesting: First, God/the Universe sends the ideal “How” to your subconscious mind, which will pick up that idea and relay it to your conscious mind in the form of brainstorms, creative new ideas, intuitive hits, new inventions, etc. Finally, YOU get to take those ideas and ACT on them to turn them into your REALITY.

One tool for visualizing is a Dream Board or Vision Board. Many of my clients make these at the beginning of each year and put them on the wall of their office or bedroom where they can stare at them daily. The board is covered with internet or magazine pictures, photos or drawings and also words that represent all the things they are looking forward to having when their Big Goals manifest.

I have told my clients to be mindful of what they put on their Vision Board, because it is a certainty that their subconscious mind is going to imprint on it and then do everything in its power to make it a reality. So if you want a RED Porsche, I tell them, don’t put up a picture of a BLACK Porsche just because you didn’t take the trouble to look for a red one. Because one of these days, you are going to find yourself standing at the dealership, being handed the keys to your new Porsche — and I promise you it will be a BLACK one.

And I have also shared with them that I have two large, glossy photos of Hawaii on my wall, just to the left of my desk where I coach. For several years, I have been staring daily at a picture of a beautiful beach in Maui and another on Kauai’s famed Na Pali Coast, which has been used to represent a tropical paradise in a number of Hollywood movies, including South Pacific.

Because I know the immense power of visualization to motivate the subconscious mind, I joked that, since we were going to spend time in Kauai on this trip, I bet that at some point, I would find myself actually standing with my toes in the sand, looking down the curved coast at the exact view of the Na Pali Coast that is hanging on my wall.

As predicted, I did end up having a “déjà vu” experience in Kauai, but not the one I imagined.

On our last full day on the island, we still had not visited any beaches, nor did either of us feel a real desire to do so. We decided to take the long, slow Kuhio Highway that loops up the east side and across the north coast of Kauai. We stopped and enjoyed several interesting attractions along the way, but the REAL draw for me, and our ultimate destination was Hanalei Town, situated near the very end of the road.

Since we were staying on the south shore, a town on the opposite end of the island would not normally be a destination we would consider worth the long, slow drive. But, as I perused a sightseeing guide that morning and came across photos of the peaceful, beautiful, missionary-era town, filled with historic buildings, I just felt a strong inner urge to see it. One of the pictures in the guide was of the little green 1912 Wai’oli Church and Mission House, set on a huge green lawn and surrounded by palm trees and beautiful flowering bushes. I made a note that we must see it while we were in Hanalei.

After lunch, we parked at the church and Rick walked across the street to take pictures of the beautiful outside, while I looked inside and imagined what it would have been like to live in that quaint town and visit that church each Sunday in a bygone era. When I joined Rick outside, and stood back, looking at the front of the church, it finally hit me.

For all those years, sitting at my desk and daydreaming about visiting Hawaii with Rick, I had been focusing my attention on the two big, glossy beach pictures, while on the windowsill right under my nose was a little unobtrusive card we had received for Christmas many years before. On the front of the card was an original photo shot by our friend. The back of the card, which I don’t remember ever reading, said, “Historic church, Kauai, Hawaii. July 2000.”

I couldn’t be absolutely sure it was the very same church until we returned home and I walked into my office. Yes! There it was. Still on my windowsill — the little green church that I had felt so drawn to take a long journey to see. I laughed out loud at God’s and my subconscious mind’s little “wink” to me – “See?” they seemed to say, “You thought about it for years, and WE delivered…. You can check that one off your bucket list!”

When we got back to our hotel in Koloa, to further preserve our memory of the lovely green church, we purchased a beautiful small print of it in a nearby art gallery. We even met the friendly local artist who just happened to be at the gallery that day, and she happily signed it for us. I am so grateful that God and my own powerful subconscious mind effortlessly delivered to me what turned out to be one of the most delightful memories of our trip.

So if you want to manifest any heartfelt Big Dream, no matter how far-fetched it may seem to you right now — just as a fabulous trip to Hawaii certainly seemed out of reach to us for many years — all you have to do to begin making it your REALITY is to believe in it, visualize it until you can really feel it, and leave the How of manifesting it up to the experts!

PLEASE NOTE: The blog will be taking Memorial Day Weekend off. A Cup of Caroll will return on Sunday, June 4.

If you would like your own free subscription to receive this blog three Sundays a month, just go to my website at http://www.practicalprosperitycoach.com and click on the Prosperity Tips button at the top.

I invite you to give a friend, colleague or loved one a truly unique gift that can change their life — ONE HOUR of Personal Success Coaching. It is absolutely F*R*E*E* with no obligation and no strings attached! You can give this to as many people who will really appreciate it as you wish. (If you haven’t been in coaching with me for a while, feel free to claim it for YOURSELF, too!)

To schedule a F*R*E*E* HOUR of phone coaching that will help them clarify their Big Goals and get into ACTION to make this their BEST year yet, have them contact me at caroll@practicalprosperitycoach.com or toll free 888-503-8145 to schedule their session.

“No act of kindness is too small. The gift of kindness may start as a small ripple that over time can turn into a tidal wave affecting the lives of many.” – Kevin Heath

My wonderful husband Rick and I just returned from nine magical days in Hawaii, celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary. As you may know, in the Hawaiian language, “Aloha” means “Hello,”“Goodbye” or “I love you.” But we learned from the people we met on the lovely islands of Oahu and Kaua’i that “Aloha Spirit”means so much more.

Virtually everyone we met who lives and works in the Islands seemed to naturally exude Aloha Spirit. In the Hawaiian culture, it is a point of pride to treat visitors like Ohana (family) by being friendly, welcoming, generous, helpful and kind. As a result, we found ourselves saying “Mahalo” (Thank you) innumerable times to strangers who went above and beyond for us during our visit.

Here are some of the key Aloha Lessons I learned from them:

Make an effort to connectemotionally — Smile and look the other person in the eye. Ask how they are doing, how their day is going. And then really listen to their answer! If things aren’t so great, the simple act of being heard tells them that they matter and lightens their burdens.

Look for little ways to be of service – You don’t have to solve the world’s problems. However, if you are in a position to lend a helping hand beyond what is required or expected, the other person will be surprised and delighted by your kindness and will never forget your genuine caring. They will become raving fans of yours, and the Law of Attraction(“energy attracts like energy”) will work in your favor the next time YOU need help.

Danielle, the desk clerk at our Kaua’i condo, was ready to log off her computer for the day when we approached and asked if there was a printer we could use to print the boarding passes for our flight home the next morning. She immediately dropped her back pack and stayed to enter the information herself and print our boarding passes. And she did it with relaxed ease and good humor, like it was the most interesting and enjoyable thing she had done all day.

It turns out that one small kindness was absolutely key to our having a smooth trip home because the ticket agent at our inter-island flight from Kaua’i to Honolulu offered to have our bags checked through from his tiny airline to our mainland plane so we wouldn’t have to do anything except board our flight to Los Angeles once we got to Honolulu. We didn’t realize that was possible and wouldn’t have thought to ask! Once on the ground, a gate agent led us through the maze of back halls in Honolulu’s huge terminals so we wouldn’t have to stand in line for a second security screening.

Because of these three people’s above-and-beyond Aloha Spirit, Rick and I were able to enjoy a relaxed lunch in the Honolulu airport and get to our gate with time to spare, setting us up for a smooth and enjoyable flight home.

Do the right thing, even if it’s not convenient — Just so you know that Aloha Spirit is also alive and well here on the Mainland, I have to give a shout out to the Hilton LAX shuttle driver who noticed us standing at the curb at midnight, having waited in vain for over 40 minutes for a Marriott shuttle to take us back to our car. On his third trip circling the airport, he stopped, opened his doors, helped us with our bags and took us and another group of stranded foreign visitors to the Marriott, even though he was technically not supposed to do that. (We became instant raving fans and tipped him big, of course. Next time, we will stay at the Hilton!)

Debbie Powers, Professor Emerita of Wellness at Ball State University, explained in a recent Body Wise International eNewsletter that being kind benefits both the giver and receiver in important ways:

“It seems like we’re in a bit of a kindness crisis these days. If you have spent time on social media, behind the wheel, in a line at a store, or at any crowded event, it seems like kindness and civility have eroded tremendously. With violence, bullying, politics and natural disasters broadcasted into our everyday consciousness, it is hard to find positivity.

Research shows that our brain’s reward center is wired to get a lift when we’re helpful and compassionate. It feels good. People with physical ailments have less pain and anxiety when presented with kindness. Everyone feels less exhausted when there is an atmosphere of kindness. It’s time for a groundswell of kindness in 2017. It starts with one person, one act. One kind act trips what social scientists call ‘social contagion.’ There is a tendency to ‘kind it forward.’

Kindness is a value that transcends borders, race, faith, and age. It contributes to healthier schools, communities and businesses. It doesn’t cost money or much time to show empathy, respect, and compassion for another person. We can all start today with a simple act of kindness to someone. Our mental and physical health is at risk without it.”

It’s an old truism that people will eventually forget what you said and did but they will never forget how you made them feel. Rick and I will never forget how so many kind and friendly people made us feel during our special celebration trip.

We can all spread some Aloha Spirit right now, in our own backyards — with family, neighbors, business associates and customers, among people you know and strangers you don’t know. If you go out of your way to do just one small kindness for someone each day, I guarantee it will return to bless you many times over. And it just may make you will feel like you are on a tropical vacation every day.

If you would like your own free subscription to receive this blog three Sundays a month, just go to my website at http://www.practicalprosperitycoach.com and click on the Prosperity Tips button at the top.

I invite you to give a friend, colleague or loved one a truly unique gift that can change their life — ONE HOUR of Personal Success Coaching. It is absolutely F*R*E*E* with no obligation and no strings attached! You can give this to as many people who will really appreciate it as you wish. (If you haven’t been in coaching with me for a while, feel free to claim it for YOURSELF, too!)

To schedule a F*R*E*E* HOUR of phone coaching that will help them clarify their Big Goals and get into ACTION to make this their BEST year yet, have them contact me at caroll@practicalprosperitycoach.com or toll free 888-503-8145 to schedule their session.